The Blur and Green Arrow meet Shadow Knight
by imbendingurspoon
Summary: Oliver has an assistant. His name is Alex. Alex likes Oliver, but he won't admit it. Alex has a secret. Alex is really a girl. Only Chloe knows and Lois is clueless and Clark just wants everyone to get along and who's this Shadow Knight?
1. Chapter 1

Standing over the city, listening to the sounds of cars running and backfiring as people talked and laughed. Steam rising from the heat of the sewers in the dark streets went higher than usual, leaving a musky, thick smell. There was a breeze to break it up before it stuck to the buildings and the people like molasses. Up top, on the taller business buildings, the wind blew harder. Without as many obstacles, the wind could blow faster and stronger. Up high, it's calmer and easier to breathe.

That was what drew him up there in the first place years ago. Ever since he first started at Queen Industries as Oliver Queen's personal assistant, nurse, target practice, and confidant. When he needed space from everything, he went up there. His job demanded almost everything of him, so he found his small space for a bit of peace. His black tie flapped in the semi-clean air as he sucked in a deep breath. So, this was it. This was how it all ended.

Great.

Taking a breath, he slowly let it out as settled himself down to sit on the ledge. Could he really do this? Leave Metropolis forever?

More importantly, could he leave Oliver? The man was helpless as a baby deer, but he'd made it clear that he didn't want Alex around anymore and now. . . It meant nothing. It broke his heart to have his best friend throw him away so easily.

Fine. He'd leave. He'd let Oliver float then drown in his own mess without a helping hand. Clark might help for a bit, but it wouldn't be the same. He would never find anyone that could hold a torch to Alex.

It was a small comfort, but it worked. For now. Shifting in his seat, he scooted closer to the edge. It was now or never. "Enough talk, time for action," he huffed. Looking down, he watched the twinkling lights for a moment, imagining that maybe one was Ollie, rushing to stop him; to apologize and make everything better. "Wishful thinking," he chuckled softly, sniffling before wiping his eyes free of stray tears.

"Alex!" A familiar voice called before hurried footsteps came up behind him. He turned and saw Clark Kent standing there. "Wait, please. There's gotta be another way than this," Clark said. Desperation to save the younger man in his eyes was easy to see. Clark was the knight in shining armor to everyone.

"Ollie made it clear that he doesn't need me to help him. He doesn't want me around for anything, so. . ." Alex's British accent shook as he fought more tears.

"Please, just come back and I'll talk to him. You don't have to jump. It's not the end of the world. Trust me, I know what it's like to be rejected by the person you love most," Clark said, inching closer. He needed to keep the younger man talking as much as possible, to keep Alex focused on Clark so he could get closer. He'd talked people down before, but not a friend. It was hitting close to home and he didn't know if Oliver could take another death.

"Not like this. You didn't see his face or hear him," Alex said, his fists were clenched together hard, making his entire body shake. " He's disgusted with me! He hates me!" He screamed, turning to face Clark. "I have no job, no home, and I've lost my best friend! I barely have myself, but I'm going to fix it. I'm going to make him regret it."

"Alex, this isn't the way." Clark could see he was losing and Alex was getting more determined.

"I'm sorry, Clark," the younger man sighed. "I really am." He pushed off from the edge, using his feet to kick him out further as Clark rushed forward to grab him.

"No! Alex!" Clark yelled, trying desperately to reach the boy in time. He couldn't. His fingers grazed Alex's shirt, but it was gone before he closed his hand.

*Several Years Earlier*

"Shirts are packed, plane is scheduled, all that's left is to get your person to said plane," the British boy said as he held an electronic tablet, checking off various tasks and events. His mousy brown hair fell in his eyes only to be flipped away.

"Is that all? I was sure climbing Everest was in there somewhere," the blond man chuckled. He reached into his closet and pulled out a fresh shirt before slipping it on. "Come on, Alex. It's okay to crack a smile every once in a while."

"With respect, Mr. Queen, it's not my job to smile," Alex said, pausing his work to glance at his boss. "What my job is, sir, is to keep you on time, well prepared, well fed, and dressed. I didn't see anything about smiling in the requirements."

"Maybe I should add that. As well as a decent haircut and wardrobe," Mr. Queen sniped back.

"My appearance is the least of your worries. you should take care of your own. . . . Wardrobe," Alex said, giving a pointed look to a black bag next to the bed.

"You say that now, but when we get to Metropolis and you're page on of Fashion Hazards, you'll be singing a different tune." Picking up his bag, Mr. Queen walked out of the room, leaving a rather irritated assistant behind. Alex looked down at his clothes for a moment. So they weren't exactly front cover of Men's Vogue. He had a sneaking suspicion that his outfit would be laughed out of the Salvation Army. A sky blue button up that was few sizes too big tucked into khaki slacks with brown loafers. Stupid Oliver. Huffing, he turned off the tablet and followed his boss's lead. Alex had been hired to run Oliver's business life, not take his fashion advice.

His own life might come second now, but that was a sacrifice for the greater good he was willing to make. The pay off or bright side was still waiting to be found. . . Maybe. . . Hopefully. A little silver lining would be nice. "Come on, Alex. For once you're the one lagging behind," Oliver snickered, enjoying a few moments of being on the other end of the spectrum. Usually Alex was the one that was harping on him non-stop. 'Don't forget your papers, wipe your chin, pick up your underwear.' It was almost like being married.

"I'm coming," the younger man huffed.

"You know, that's a first for me," Oliver said, a sly smile spreading across his face as they stepped into the elevator. "Never made you come before." He could feel the heat from the younger man. Alex was blushing so hard.

Oliver 1. Alex 0.

Half of Oliver's free time was spent making Alex as uncomfortable as possible. The boy was so straight laced, he had a theory about an invisible stick in a very uncomfortable place that desperately needed to be pulled out.

There was no real come back as Alex was more preoccupied with restraining himself from committing murder. While it would be sweet retribution, it would help no one. The elevator was silent as it went down the floors, achingly slow. Oliver just stood ther, grinning. Alex stared at the doors, willing them to open faster and free him from the suddenly hot compartment. It felt like forever in hell. Finally, it dinged open and Alex shot out, not getting out there fast enough. "What's wrong, Alex? Was it something I said?"

Following slowly, Oliver shuffled out into the lobby, smirking. Alex was already in the limo waiting. He'd give the younger man that. Alex was fast. "Airport," the boy grunted as Oliver took a seat in the limo and shut the door.

"Yes sir," the driver said before he pulled them out of the building's drive way and onto the streets of Star City.

"The plane is about to take off, sir," a stewardess said as she made sure that Oliver and Alex were settled in and comfortable before take off.

"Thank you, Cindy," Oliver said, eyeing her a few moments as she walked away. "Are you sure you're not interested? I'm sure underneath the geeks there's a sexual beast just waiting to be let out." Turning to look at Alex, Oliver smiled. One of those dashing, woman melting, annoying smiles.

"She's not my type," Alex mumbled under his breath, referring to the stewardess.

"Then what is your type? Are you even old enough to have a type?" Oliver sipped a bottle of water a moment as he eyed the younger man as he worked through some papers.

"I'm 21. Of course I have a type." Oh, why did he say that? He just opened Pandora's box of harassing and teasing.

"Oh? You sound like a man that knows what he wants. Care to share with the rest of the class?" That grin was very irritating.

"Blonds," Alex said. It was short and sweet and hopefully enough to satisfy Oliver's curiosity.

"Blonds? That's it? The way to Alex Killian's hear is with blond hair." There was no need to even look at Alex to know that the boy was blushing, again.

"Yes."

"What about boobs or butts?"

"I don't care so long. . . As long as they have blond hair."

"Alex, I think you're blushing."

Oliver 2. Alex 0.

The entire plane ride was spent with Alex pretending to nap and Oliver chatting up the stewardess. As usual , the older man made plans with the woman and Alex was left to run defense while the billionaire play boy got his jollys. Alex didn't mind. He'd been resigned a long time ago to the fact that he'd have no life outside his duties to Oliver. Not to mention Oliver's extra curricular activities. While there was teasing and picking at, Oliver was a good guy deep down. Deep, deep down.

Oliver went his way and Alex went his as soon as they were out of the airport. The blond man had a brunette on his arms and Alex was left with his tablet and an apartment to unpack. Committed to the cause that was Oliver Queen, Alex lived with the man. Not only was he a personal assistant, but a butler, cook, and go to man on anything involving technology. He wasn't sure if the man sometimes forgot everything he did or if he just didn't care. Alex was banking on both.

Alex arrived at the building fairly quickly and rode up the loft elevator. It was noisy and took a moment to open because it was manual. Perfect. Stepping into their new home he looked around it was pretty cool, for an older building. Most of the moving was already done. He would just have to unpack. Brushing his frizzy hair back behind his ears, he looked around. Boxes upon boxes on top of crates. "Time to get to work," he said before he picked up the first box and set it down on a desk. Opening it, he pulled out its contents then put them in their places.

Several hours later, five cups of coffee, and a change into a baggy t-shirt and jeans, that like the rest of his wardrobe was two sizes too big, and Alex was finished.

"Have I ever told you that your outfits are painful to look at? All baggy and frumpy looking when you've got arms the size of my pinky." Turning, Alex rolled his eyes at the boss coming home from a long day's work of nothing but playing with a brunette. "Thank you, at least I know it's in good hands with you," Oliver said as he looked around. He was impressed. Alex always out did himself and he never could thank him enough, for everything. "Have you taken anything for a test run yet?"

"Nope. Was waiting for you to get here," Alex said, picking up a remote control. As much as Oliver was an asshole, the night time activities were fun. "Here it goes, Boss," he said, cracking a grin as he pressed a button and the front room came to life with lights and sliding panels to show off a green room with various types of bows and arrows and weapons. "Green Arrow is in business."


	2. Chapter 2

Oliver and Alex had been in town only a few weeks and already they were hard at work with the Green Arrow and Queen Industries. Oliver was contributing to Martha Kent on her senate campaign while Alex was setting up business meetings and charity events. Things were getting interesting now that Green Arrow was on the radar of some of the newspapers.

Working at the desk, mixing and matching meetings with breathing time, Alex heard the elevator come up. He barely glanced at Oliver as he came in. "That was quick," he said, typing up a 'Thank You' to a few companies that had welcomed Oliver to Metropolis with gift baskets and the like. "Was Mrs. Kent not able to speak with you about the campaign?"

"I didn't even get in the front door," Oliver chuckled. "I dropped off the package, but a feisty brunette blocked the way. She thought I was the delivery guy, even gave me a tip." The blond dropped the few dollars down onto the desk in front of Alex.

"Shall I put it in the safe with the family jewels?" The boy asked as he glanced at the crumbled bills, then up at Oliver.

"I was thinking more along the lines of getting a coffee or tea or whatever you drink," Oliver said, bounding up the steps towards his bedroom. "I'm going to do my yoga. Why don't you take a break? It's a beautiful day outside. It's supposed to be like that all week. Maybe cure that excessive paleness you've got going on."

"It's genetics and I burn easily," Alex grumbled under his breath as he glared at the screen. Striking the keys a few more moments, he paused. Oliver was in his room changing to do his body bending fun and that left Alex with. . . about ten minutes to spare between the next task he had to tackle. Chewing his lip a moment, he picked up the cash and put it in his desk drawer. Maybe some decent tea would pick him up a bit. Tomorrow. It was a few minutes before Oliver came back out in his work out pants and had a yoga mat under his arm. Two, actually.

"Get over here. You need a break and some de-stressing. You're throwing your shakra off by sitting there and shuffling papers and staring at a computer screen all day." Oliver set up the mats, waiting on Alex before standing up and looking over at the other. "Hey, part of your job is to do what I tell you and right now I'm telling you to get over here and get bendy."

"What?" Alex said, turning in his seat and gave Oliver a confused look.

"I said get over here and do yoga with me. If you don't at least get up in the next ten seconds, I will break your precious work tablet into a tiny million pieces," Oliver threatened. Alex stayed in his seat, confused, for a few moments before getting up. His tablet held everything he needed and if Oliver broke it, then he just might curl into a ball and cry. "Good, now go put some clothes on you can work better in." Sighing in defeat, Alex nodded. He went to his room and quickly changed into a baggy t-shirt and work out shorts before coming back.

"There. I'm changed and ready to break my back," Alex said, walking out. Oliver was already sitting on his mat in the Lotus position waiting on him.

"You have really skinny legs," Oliver said, staring at the other man's legs. The hair was fine and light, almost non-existent. It was a weird fascinating sight to the older man.

"Thank you for noticing the obvious." Walking over, Alex took a seat across from Oliver, mimicking his position. "So, we're working on yoga?"

"Yep. You need to unwind before you pop a screw loose and go postal on the place." Every once in a while, Oliver would force Alex into yoga to make sure the young man was managing his work load. It made him feel better knowing that at least one of his employees knew he wasn't just the party playboy everyone thought of him. Besides, Alex was as close as family as he could get.

"Thank you for thinking so highly of me," Alex grumbled.

"No problem. Now, downward dog." Oliver easily stood with a small rock to get his moment going. Alex, on the other hand, had to unwind his legs and get up from his knees and pushed himself up with his hands. Slowly, the younger man got into the position. Putting his feet at shoulders width apart before bending over and attempting to make a tent shape with his body.

"Oh God, you're trying to kill me," Alex grunted, feeling the blood rush to his head as Oliver helped move his body a bit to make it easier.

"That's what you always say, yet here you are," Oliver chuckled. "Dolphin now." Alex whined before Oliver helped him keep the position as he shifted down to use his forearms as support while trying to keep his feet as flat as possible. "There you go. That's not so bad is it?"

"I hate you," Alex huffed, trying to breath correctly so he didn't pass out.

"Just a few more seconds and. . . There. Knees down so you don't fall," Oliver instructed as he helped Alex down, holding his sides. "Warrior pose then back bend and full boat, then I'll let you go. Do the warrior on your own and you can skip the last one." Alex thought about it a moment before letting his head fall down and admit defeat with a groan. "That's the spirit. Now, get up and get in position."

"How many women want to hear that from you?" Alex snorted as he stood up.

"All of them," Oliver smirked as Alex rolled his eyes. "Stop talking and start bending."

The next morning, Alex hardly felt the effects of the random and extreme yoga. Thankfully he was naturally flexible enough to not feel the aches and pains the day after. If all else failed, he kept a bottle of Tylenol in his desk drawer. There was a coffee shop just a block or so away, they were practically on every corner in Metropolis. For the business world, coffee was the petrol that the fueled the body. For Alex, his fuel was tea. It was more of the premium type. Better and healthier for the body and kept it running longer. The walk was a few minutes away and it was beautiful outside. Oliver had been right about that much. It was city air, but it still felt a bit nicer than indoor A/C. The brisk walk did him some good to perk up a bit before he went inside the coffee shop to wait in the surprisingly short line. Maybe today was supposed to be a good day for him.

Or fate had a different hand in mind for him. As Alex stepped up to give his order, some woman just shoved right in front of him. "Excuse me," he said, but she ignored him.

"I need the biggest gift basket you have. Load it up with extras if you gotta," she said. Alex just glared hard for a moment before tapping her rather hard on the shoulder. "What?" She spun on him like he was a menace.

"You can't just shove in front of the line, that's rude," he said, trying to be as assertive as possible. With his height and build, it was kind of hard at times.

"Well, I'm running late and I've got some major butt kissin' to do, so why don't you just chill it out for a second and I'll be in and out of here before you know it." Promptly, she turned and ignored him again. Alex stared at her with contempt, wishing something would drop on her as she shuffled to the side while waiting on her order. At least it was his turn.

"Earl Gray with a touch of milk, please." Giving his order, he went to the side where Rude Lady stood, tapping impatiently on the counter. If only he was able to speed things up. Karma was at least on his side a bit as his order came up before hers. "Thank you," he said giving the barista a small smile before turning to leave.

"Excuse me!" That horrible voiced barked before the woman shoved past him, spilling his precious beverage down the front of his shirt. Wonderful. Alex looked up to call after her, but she was already gone.

"Worst three dollars ever spent," he mumbled, sipping what was left of his drink before leaving. The walk was slower going back. Probably because he was in a worse mood than when he left the apartment. A cold, wet shirt soaked from his chest to his waist. Trying to soak up as much with a napkin, Alex stepped into the elevator and hit the floor button he wanted. It was a quick ride, thankfully. That small beam of hope for the rest of the day going better was shattered when he stepped out and heard the voice he wished to never hear again. Damn it.

"So, I came bearing gifts and humble pie," the woman said as she handed a half naked Oliver a gift basket. "I wanted to apologize for earlier today. I wasn't thinking and I thought maybe a gift basket might help. Mrs. Kent is really a good woman and with your support it would take her further onto greater things than just where she is now." The woman certainly had a way with words, Alex thought.

"Ms. Lane," Oliver said, ignoring his wet assistant for the moment. "I do appreciate the apology and the basket. I'll keep my contribution to Mrs. Kent's campaign. On one condition."

When the woman decided to ignore Alex's presence, he sighed and went to the changing partition. There was always a set of clean clothes there. Mostly Oliver's, but Alex had a few spares stashed back there.

"I want you to attend this up coming campaign party that Lionel Luther is holding for Mrs. Kent. As my date."

Sticking his head out from behind the partition, Alex gave Oliver a dirty look. He was supposed to go to that. Not this... this horrible excuse for a woman! It was rare that Alex got to do something fun like these parties. He was able to set his tablet, that was usually attached to his hand daily, down and be able to just relax and enjoy the food and drink and watching people. Now that dream was crushed.

"If you needed a date that badly, I'm sure there are other women to choose from," Ms. Lane scoffed before seeing Oliver give her a pointed look. "Or I could be your date."

"It's settled then," Oliver said, smiling triumphantly. Alex ducked back behind the partition and finished changing his shirt before coming back out. "I'll send a driver to pick you up at eight, Lois."

"Eight works perfectly," Lois said.

It was like Alex didn't even exist in their little conversation world. Walking over to the desk, he picked up his tablet and scheduled the driver. He'd been looking forward to that party and now he was stuck in the office. Alex felt tossed to the side a bit. Even at the last minute, Oliver didn't just leave him behind. His boss knew that he liked going to them and now he was out and this rude woman was in. Alex didn't let it show though. He was able to do that much.

"Did you get that, Alex?" Oliver called from his spot in front of Lois.

"Yes, sir. It's been scheduled and confirmed," Alex said, looking up as Lois and Oliver looked over. So maybe there was some silver lining. The look on Lois's face made him smile a bit, on the inside.

"You're the guy from the coffee place," Lois said, here eyes wide like a deer in headlights.

"And you're the woman that had some butt kissing to do," Alex said, calm and stoic. After all, he didn't get to be Oliver's assistant by getting emotional and throwing things in people's faces. "Everything is ready for this evening, sir." He looked up at Oliver, meeting his eyes for a moment before looking back at Lois. "Will you require any help with acquiring proper attire?"

"Uh, no. I think I can pull something out of my closet of wonders," Lois said, putting on a smile.

"Think that closet of wonders has anything for Boy Wonder over there?" Oliver asked, nodding his head to Alex. Alex could feel his face start to twitch, just the slightest. It was like there was this storm of rage building and the only thing between it and Oliver were those small muscle spasms.

"Maybe not in my closet, but a decent credit card and a day at Macy's and Express and maybe then Boy Wonder might get the look you want," Lois said, looking over at Alex who just stared back at the pair of them, hard.

"Maybe a hair cut or something so he doesn't look like a walking bush," Oliver said, ignoring the look as he was used to it by now.

"So when did I become your personal assistant?" Lois quipped.

"You're a stand in till mine looks like he didn't just wake up and put on his dad's clothes." Oliver nodded to Alex, who stood there trying to contain the redness of his face.

"I'm standing in the same room with you," Alex grumbled. That twitch was starting to get worse and he was sure that it would go into a full blown face contortion soon.

"Treat yourself to a nice lunch and make sure that he looks like a man instead of a 12 year old." Oliver turned around and walked over to a filing cabinet to pilfer through the top drawer before he found what he was looking for. "Here is that credit card and there is the assistant. I'm sure you could do wonders for him," he smirked. Alex rolled his eyes before going to the elevator with Lois to do their new task. The first few moment were quiet and slightly awkward before Lois spoke up.

"Look, I know we got off on the wrong foot, but maybe we could turn this hate into a partnership. I keep Oliver busy and you get to follow your dreams in that new found free time," Lois said as she stood on her side of the elevator while Alex stood on his trying to bridge the gap between them. Alex frowned, glancing at Lois from the corner of his eye. "What? You honestly can't tell me that your life long dream was to do Oliver Queen's dry cleaning."

"It's none of your business what my dreams and ambitions are." Alex felt he was in the right to be huffy. He'd been sent under a non-optional Extreme Make Over.

"Look, Hoity-Toity, I gotta do this for a friend. Your boss obviously cares enough to make sure you don't look like a total flop in front of every business associate that you meet. So suck it up and let him do something nice for you. Not all bosses are that kind." The silence in the elevator was deafening.

Alex never was a debater, even if he was in the right. He sighed in defeat. "Where's the first stop?"

"Clothes. There's a Men's Express a few block away. . . On second thought, maybe we should cut and color your hair first," Lois said, looking Alex up and down.

"Color?" This was sounding more and more like a giant project that would end him on a plastic surgeon's table.

"Well of course. Your color's borderline mayhem," she sighed, picking at a strand.

"What's wrong with my hair color?" Alex leaned away, taking the piece of hair out of her hand. He thought his hair was perfectly fine.

"It looks like bleach blond rolled in a dirty puddle. Needs to be shorter too. You look like a guy that doesn't care for his appearance a whole lot." Lois bit her lip as she studied Alex's face and body. "I'm thinking business/emo/rocker. A splash of dark colors and blacks for edge. Make you look older. Of course it'll have to be in your size. This whole comfy/frumpy thing has to go."

"I like comfy," Alex mumbled.

"Well, we'll compromise. You'll look half way decent and still be comfortable." As soon as the elevator opened, Lois grabbed Alex's hand. "Come on, we've got work to do." There was a quick ride in a taxi to a salon that Lois swore by and before Alex could even think of protesting, his dirty blond hair was gone.

"It's. . ."

"Yes?"

"It's. . ."

"Fabulous!" The hair dresser beamed.

"I feel like I should be in an emo band," Alex sighed.

"No, you'd need longer bangs," Lois smirked. "Besides, the black just makes you stand out more."

"Yes, because that's what I want to do." Reaching up and playing with his new fringed bangs, Alex scrunched up his nose. It felt weird. The hair dresser had buzzed his sides and back, razoring the top to keep some length without cutting it too terribly short.

"It's sexy and simple and easy to fix into business or play," the hair dresser piped in, obviously in love with his work.

"It won't be getting any play," Alex mumbled.

"So what do you really think?" Lois asked as the hair dresser cleaned Alex up.

"My ears look huge."

"You'll grow into them," she said, heading over to pay. Alex was quiet for a moment before looking up at the hair dresser.

"Thanks. . . For the sideburns."

"No problem, Honey," the hair dresser smiled and winked. "Always happy to help." After Lois came back, she dragged Alex back out into the streets and into a cab, paying a few extra dollars to get them to the nearest men's clothing store. There, Lois paved the way through all the sections and grabbed a bit of everything.

"Here. Take these, these, and this," Lois said, handing Alex several pairs of slacks, shirts, and ties. "Go to the changing room and try them on. There's different sizes to see exactly what you are."

"I know what I am. Miserable." Nevertheless, Alex took the clothes and shuffled into the changing room. Shedding his clothes he had on, he jumped and hopped into a pair of fitted slacks before picking up a white button up and slipping it on. The clothes fit him. After he did everything up and put on the tie, he looked like a whole new person. They fit his body and didn't make him look like he was wearing a tent. Huh. . . Maybe Lois was on to something.

"Get out here and show me what you've got," Lois called into the dressing rooms. "Or I could come in there."

"I'm on my way out!" Alex called, quickly putting his feet into a pair of slip on dress boots. Hurrying out before the forward Ms. Lane could come barging in, he came out and stood for her to see. "Is that okay?"

"Well," she said, raising an eyebrow. "Look what happened to Cinderella at the ball." Walking over to him, she circled him and nodded to herself. "I think we found your new look. Now, tell me the size and I'll go get you a whole new wardrobe. We'll get you a suit later. That's what tailors are for." Walking up behind him, she pulled out the pants from behind and looked at the tag.

"Lois!" He cried, jerking a bit.

"What? Just checking your size." Lois let go of his pants before standing behind him a moment, humming a moment.

"What now?" Alex groaned, scared of what else she'd pull on.

"For a skinny guy your size, your butt's pretty good looking. Usually a guy with your build wouldn't have a butt, but yours is all toned and perky." The woman was pretty sure that Alex was about to burst into flames, if his extremely red neck was any indication. "Alright, you keep that on, I'll grab you more shirts and ties and pants, go pick out a few jackets and blazers, then we're off to a late lunch!"

"Wonderful," Alex said as he went back into the changing room to grab his clothes.

"You know, if you hated it so much you would have left already," Lois sang behind him. God, she was right. Not that he would admit it. It wasn't very often he was the center of attention and not Oliver. It felt kinda nice actually.

Finally it was time to get some food. Alex was starving. Lunch was pleasant. While Alex sat quietly and enjoyed his meal of pasta and salad and soup while Lois continually talked about her life as a reporter and the articles and stories, not to mention her 'friend' Clark Kent. It just kept going and going and going, but Alex was starting to not mind. He liked hearing about other people. Their lives and everything that happened in it. He was a library of information about all of Oliver's business partners and associates as well as most of the workers that interacted with him daily, not to mention Oliver himself. "You know, you don't talk a whole lot," she finally said, pausing in her meal of a hoagie and fries.

"I'm a listener, I like to hear what people have to say about themselves and their lives. Everyone has got a story to tell and. . . Sometimes it's very interesting to hear," Alex said. He took a sip of his water as Lois just shook her head.

"You are every woman's dream," she said.

"Excuse me?" He said, frowning in confusion.

"You're a good listener, you say just. . . The way you say things is so, I don't know. That accent, even if your voice is kinda high for a boy, just makes girls go crazy. It's going to be easy to nab a girl after today."

"How do you know I don't already have a girlfriend?"

"Oh trust me, single white male was just wafting off of you when I saw you earlier today. It doesn't take a genius to figure that out," Lois chuckled.

"Wow, thanks for that insightfulness," he mumbled, rolling his eyes.

"What? I'm just saying." The problem Alex could already see was just that. Lois was always 'just saying.'

"Doesn't matter. What does matter is that I have to get back to finish up work I was supposed to be doing." Work was a very good excuse for Alex, even if it was very over used.

"Ah, I see. Workaholic." Lois finished off her drink before flagging down the waitress to hand her the poor, abused credit card. Alex was going to flinch when he added up the receipts, he just knew it. "Okay, let's get you back to your ball and chain."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Alex looked up at her confused.

"Your desk and work. That's what I mean," Lois said as she signed for the meal and stood up. "Come on, Pinocchio. It's time to show Oliver that you're a real boy now." Alex almost chortled at the irony of that statement. Almost. A few more extra dollars and they were back at the building before Alex knew it.

The ride up the elevator was making Alex nervous. It wasn't often he got nervous and this time he wasn't sure why. "Okay Alex, let's make a grand entrance," Lois said as the elevator stopped and she stepped in front of him. Opening the door she saw Oliver standing at the desk. "Ladies and gentlemen! I present the new and improved Alex!" She cried, standing aside while doing spirit fingers and mimicking fanfare. Stepping out, Alex raised an eyebrow at her before looking at Oliver. That look of just. . . Pure shock was something new. He'd never seen the older man make that face before.

"Wow, talk about an over haul," Oliver said, walking over to them.

"It took some time and effort, but I brought your boy back all squeaky clean and decent looking," Lois beamed as Oliver looked him over. Alex was still wearing the outfit Lois had him try on first, adding in vest on a whim. She said it gave him that 'hipster, but not hipster' look. Whatever that meant.

"What do you think, Alex?" Oliver asked the younger man.

"I. . . I think it will take some getting used to, but I will managed," Alex said, smoothing out the few wrinkles he had on his vest.

"Good. You look a hell of a lot better than before. I might actually admit you're my assistant." Wonderful, when Oliver was possibly starting to sound like a decent guy, he put his foot back in his mouth. Alex just rolled his eyes before stepping back into the elevator to start picking up and moving the massive amounts of store bags he and Lois had brought back.

"Was it something I said?"

"No, Oliver. I just have work to catch up on. So, I'll deposit my bags in my room and get back to it while you do your work and Ms. Lane is able to go get ready for the party tonight," Alex said, walking briskly back to his bedroom to drop off the bags. He'd unpack them later. Right then, he had to take care of other matters. Coming back out, he saw Oliver and Lois heading back with the rest of them. The irritation wore off a little from that small amount of kindness. "Thank you," he said as they came back out.

"Wouldn't want to keep you from work. Which, is where I should be heading if I want to go with Mr. Queen here, later tonight," Lois said.

"I will see you later tonight then," Oliver said, escorting Lois to the elevator. There were a few words in private that Alex didn't hear. Not that he was eavesdropping. Nope, it was work on the desk that he pulled up and started to rearrange. Apparently Oliver attempted to help a bit, but it turned out into more of a mess than help. When the elevator shut and Lois was gone, Oliver turned to Alex. "So, now you're all dressed up with no where to go. Anything you plan on doing with your fancy new duds?"

"I have something in mind, but after work," Alex said, fingers typing furiously.

"Good, because we've got a busy night ahead of us." Oliver tossed a few photographs in front of Alex to look at. "Mrs. Kent is wearing it tonight, on loan from Lionel Luthor."

"And you plan to make sure it goes to a better person?" Alex asked, looking over the pictures before pulling up plans of the building.

"Something like that." Oliver stood behind Alex, looking over the plans himself.

"You're daft, just so you know," the boy said, pausing to look over his shoulder at his boss.

"Of course, when have you known me not to be?" Oliver grinned.

"Never."

"Exactly."


	3. Chapter 3

Alex had had a late night didn't get back till morning. Thankfully, Oliver had been preoccupied with Ms. Lane the night before and was already at work. That meant he would get a few hours of shut eye. Maybe. Yawning, he undressed when he got to his room and pulled out a t-shirt and work out shorts before going to the bathroom. Looking in the mirror, he winced a bit at his reflection. Maybe a quick shower to wash off the muck and grime. Turning the water on, he took off the ace wrap around his chest.

"God, I have to find a new way to do this. I'm going to make myself flatter than I already am. Jesus," he groaned, massaging his chest. As soon as the shower got steamy, he pulled the curtain back and instantly felt better. The hot water relaxed the tense muscles that were aching from the hits taken the night before. Grabbing a wash cloth, he soaped it up and started to scrub to get all the dirt off. At least he didn't have to worry about his hair. It was already black and you couldn't tell if it was dirty or not. That didn't mean he skipped out on at least washing it out with water. The shower lasted a luxurious fifteen minutes before he stepped out and dried off. Slipping into his shorts and t-shirt, he thought for a moment before going and grabbing a hooded sweat shirt as well.

Alex slipped it on and had just laid down on his bed when he heard a familiar voice. Wasn't Oliver supposed to be at work? "Alex! Come on! Rise and shine!" Tea. He would need the extra strong, black tea for the rest of the day. Slowly, he pushed himself up to his elbows and looked at the blond man standing in his bedroom door way. "I didn't peg you for being a bum, but. . . Why is your hair wet?" Oliver asked, pointing to Alex's wet head.

"I just finished a shower," Alex said before getting up from the bed, even as his body protested very loudly. "What are you doing here? You're supposed to be at work."

"Ah. Okay, you should get changed then. I've already done my duties. Clark's coming by and so is Lois." The grin on Oliver's face was very hard to miss. Lois had become a recent development. A seemingly permanent development. She was there more often than Alex was. Of course usually when she was there, he was not. For specific purposes of making the living situation as copacetic as possible. Not only did he live with his boss, but he also worked there a great deal. Alex was almost starting to consider moving to a new place. Which made him sad, slightly. For so long it had been him and Oliver together. Granted there were the flings here and there, but Alex had never felt threatened by anyone. Not that he should. He didn't like Oliver too much and they were coworkers and he shouldn't feel threatened by a girlfriend.

Yet, he did.

Setting aside the confusion, he nodded and went to his closet and started to grab his clothes for the day. "I have to go by the office and work there today. I'm briefing the interns and giving them a tour of the facility they'll be working in," Alex said, before turning to look at Oliver who was staring at him. "What is it?"

"Are you okay?" Oliver asked, frowning a bit as he leaned against the door frame. "You look tired. Did you work late again?"

"Yes, catching up on some things. It's nothing to worry about, I just need some maté tea," Alex said, nodding as he picked up his clothes and headed to the bathroom.

"Must be really tired if you're going for maté. You usually drink just straight black," Oliver commented before leaving the room. It was funny how well Oliver knew Alex, his habits and preferences, but didn't really know him.

"Must be," Alex mumbled as he closed the bathroom door and grabbed up the ace wrap and wrapped up his chest again, grumbling about getting flatter and flatter. Getting dressed, he fixed his hair with a smidgen of gel and went back out to grab his business work boots and slipped them on. Alex came out of his room and was met with a wonderful smell. He followed his nose till he came to the living area and found a large coffee with a bagel smothered in cream cheese. Oliver had already gone by the looks of it, so he snatched up the coffee and bagel before grabbing a jacket to head to the business building. It was only a block away and thankfully he still had time to spare when he hustled down the street. Getting in after finishing his bagel and almost done with his coffee, he wormed his way through to the elevator to get to the seventh floor. He was sure interns were already waiting to get this over with so they could get to work.

Getting to the floor he needed, Alex jumped out and walked briskly down the rather calm hall to the meeting room where he was supposed to be in just a few minutes. Slipping out of his coat, he stopped at Oliver's secretary's desk to drop it off, giving the older woman a word of thanks before continuing to the meeting room. "Hello, everyone. Please take a seat and we'll begin," Alex said in a loud, authoritative voice as he came into the room full of young and old faces. "My name is Alex Killian, please call me Alex. I am Mr. Oliver Queen's personal assistant. That doesn't mean I fetch him coffee or clothes, that means I do everything in my power to make his business, and sparsely his personal, life run as smooth as possible. Now, my job today is to give you a tour of the three floors you will be working on. It will take approximately an hour and a half for the first two floors, we break for lunch, then continue with the third floor of your jobs then finish orientation. Are there any questions? No? Good. Let us begin."

It was a whirlwind of a day. Oliver was in meetings while Alex was playing Shepard to doe eyed interns who were enthralled with the notion of working in a large corporate building under the name of Queen. After the tours, Alex went about getting files for Oliver he would need to look at later, getting faxes and answering emails, making sure that the meetings were going smoothly with texts and IMs to Oliver. Finally, when the business day was over, he still had to do a few hours of research before going home to get ready for a fun night with Lois, Oliver, and Clark. The dark haired man was rather nice. He was no nonsense and easy to get along with. At least that's how Alex felt.

By the time he was able to go home, Alex was exhausted. There was still the poker night and patrol to do though. This would be the death of him. He was positive of it. Grabbing another cup of coffee on his way home, Alex went his usual route and came home to no one. Checking his phone, he found a text from Oliver. Seems there was an emergency and Green Arrow and the Blur were needed. Maybe they needed some help. Pocketing his phone, he rushed over to the balcony where there were plenty of shadows. He didn't even pause before just running into one. First he was there, then he was gone.

Across town, where there was a gang unloading drugs from a boat, Green Arrow and the Blur were waiting. The boxes were stuffed with toy animals that had drugs inside of them. An easy way to conceal them. There were shadows surrounding everywhere, an easy place to get into since Alex was able to use the shadows as portals. Swallowing, as he looked around for a moment, spotting where Green Arrow and the Blur were waiting. Alex waved a hand in front of himself, letting the shadows wrap around him before they shot away.

He stood there in a fitted, black tunic with silver and black armor running down his right shoulder to his gauntlet clad hand. A twin to the right gauntlet was worn on his left hand, his left arm bare except for the leather sleeve of his tunic. Alex's face was covered in a black material from the eyes down and his head was covered with a hood. Looking like a knight from the medieval ages, Alex took off. He hopped from shadow to shadow as he got closer. The Blur and Green Arrow had already started to fight, but then something happened. Someone tossed out a glowing, green rock and the Blur fell hard. It was like he'd been hit with a truck. Looking at Green Arrow, he was being overwhelmed with thugs. This wasn't going well.

It was Alex's turn to jump in. Using his momentum and instincts, he ran in and took out one thug with a simple tackle. Rolling to his feet, he threw up a fist and knocked another thug into one more and took them both out. He flipped backwards to avoid a punch to the head before squatting down and sweep kicking the man's feet out from under him and finishing him with a quick punch to the face. Looking up, he saw Green Arrow get an opening as he started to fight his way to the Blur. Alex kept up the fight, trying to give the other two a chance to collect themselves. "The rock!" Green Arrow yelled, pointing to the glowing rock next to the Blur. "Get rid of it!"

Scooping it up and using it to take out a gangster, Alex threw it as hard and as far as he could into the water. It worked. As soon as it was out of the way, the Blur was back up and fighting. Standing still for a split second, Alex watched as the gangsters were all suddenly tied up and the sirens could be heard coming. He looked over at Green Arrow and the Blur who stood there looking right back at him. "Who are you?" The Blur asked.

"Call me. . . Shadow Knight," Alex said, his voice distorted into an echo to help mask him. The sirens were getting closer and the flashing lights were already bouncing off the buildings and ground. The moment that the Blur looked at Green Arrow and vice versa, Alex stepped back into the shadows and was gone. A split second later, Alex walked back into his and Oliver's apartment from the balcony as normal Alex again.

He sighed and looked around. With Green Arrow out, there was more work to be done and that meant no time to rest. Alex went to the desk and started to pull up Oliver's tracking signal and com, downloading all the data that was streaming through his sunglasses. He rubbed his face as he started to sort through all the data and logged it on their encrypted hard drive. Patrol could wait when Green Arrow was out. It was only for when he had to be at home because of Lois and even then it was hard not to help since that was supposed to be his job. Alex worked hard through another night, doing his duties of being a side kick of sorts to Green Arrow. Helping catch the bad guys of Metropolis.

The next morning was much like the day before. Take a shower, lay down in bed for a moment or two before it's time to get up again. The day after that was too. All through the week it was late nights, no sleep and little nourishment. It was getting to the point where Alex wasn't sure he was going to make it through the day. It was Saturday and he was still working. Sure he worked all the time with the weekend afternoons off, but he was up to maybe two hours of sleep since Monday. Oliver and he had had little time to even see each other at the apartment and it was getting to the point where Alex was getting sloppy. When Green Arrow was out, Alex was in. When Oliver was in, Shadow Knight was out. The only aid he found was in tea or energy drinks and they weren't working so well anymore.

The sun was setting and Oliver was getting ready to take Lois out for a date. It was over due since he rarely finished one. Alex sat at the desk, blinking rapidly to keep the computer screen in focus as he worked. It was hard and he had to finish it because the business letter needed to be sent out that night before Sunday. "So any big plans tonight?" Oliver asked as he came down the small set of stairs as Alex kept his focus on the work at hand. "Hello, Earth to Alex." The blond walked over to his assistant, concern etched onto his face. "Alex?" He said again, tapping on the younger man's shoulder.

"Huh?" Alex said, stopping as he blinked rapidly for a moment before turning to Oliver.

"What's going on, Alex? I know you work harder than anyone I know, but you just look. . . Ready to crash," Oliver said, wondering if maybe something was really wrong. He hadn't been around to really see Alex this week and now he was finally standing and looking at the younger man, he was worried. "You can talk me, you know that, right?"

"Yeah. Every thing's fine," Alex nodded. Saturday night was going to be him taking a shower and crashing till Sunday afternoon. That was his wonderful plan for the night. "Don't worry about me, go on your date." Oliver needed this time to feel like he was still apart of the real world instead of slinking around in the shadows. Alex had resigned himself to a life of that and he didn't want to see his friend end up the same way.

"Are you positive?" Oliver pushed. Some thing just didn't feel right. Alex had extremely dark circles under his eyes that were close to looking like a black eye and not to mention he hadn't seen him eat really anything besides a bagel with his coffee he constantly had in his hand. "I can cancel the date with Lois. She'd understand if you needed a guys night out or something."

"No. I insist. Go out and have fun. I'm just staying in and keeping it a calm evening with take out and wine," Alex said, standing up and physically turning Oliver around and pushing him towards the elevator.

"Alright, alright," Oliver said, giving in to the pushy British man. "I'll go. You just relax tonight. I know you've been working your ass off all week and then some."

"Don't worry, I plan on it," Alex said, a hint of a smile showing.

"I'll see you later," Oliver said as he closed the elevator and rode it down. Alex sighed in relief. It was nice to have someone worry about him, but he didn't need it. Going back to work, he went up to grab a file from cabinet they kept by the desk. He had to write a letter of interest to a inventor that had designed a more Earth friendly way of powering the city. Oliver had thought the idea was amazing and Alex was right behind him. The Earth needed all the help it could get anymore. Except, when he went to look for the file, Alex couldn't find it right off.

"Damn it, where are you?" He huffed as he searched, pausing a moment to rub his eyes to get them to focus more. "There." Finally finding it, he pulled it out only to drop it all over the floor. Alex stared at it confused, not understanding why he'd just dropped it like that. His head began to fog over and feel light as his knees buckled and he fell to the ground. It was a hard thump that would usually make him jump right back up, but his body was refusing to move. Instead, he finally gave in and let his brain shut down to finally rest.

It had taken Oliver getting to his car and fishing for his keys when he realized that he'd forgotten them back up inside the apartment. Wonderful. Lois wouldn't be too upset as long as he actually showed up. Going back up, he was in the middle of texting Lois when he stepped off and looked around. It was silent and there was a file cabinet open. Frowning, he put the phone away for a moment as he walked in cautiously. "Alex? Where are you?" He called, hoping to hear a response. When he didn't, he got more worried. "Alex?" Walking further in, he saw the younger man's hand on the ground, limp. "Alex!" Rushing up and over, he found Alex unconscious on the ground. He should have stayed here. He could have made sure that Alex was okay and now his friend was on the ground out cold. Oliver mentally berated himself as he tried to wake the other man up. He was always saving people that he'd never see again and when the person he needed to save the most was right in front of him, he walked away.

"Come on Alex, wake up. Wake up!" Oliver cried, sitting Alex up against the wall, patting his cheek to try and wake him up a bit. The shouting and the patting didn't do anything. Making sure Alex wouldn't fall over, he rushed to the kitchen to get a glass of water. Sprinting back, he nearly slid into the unconscious man in his hurry. "Come on, come on." Throwing a bit of the water into Alex's face, Oliver hoped it would be enough. Thankfully as soon as the cold water made contact, Alex was sputtered and jerking back to the land of the living.

"What. . . What the bloody hell?" Alex gasped as he blinked away the water, trying to wipe it out of his face. "What's going on? Oliver?" He looked at the other man, wide eyed and confused about what was happening. "What are you doing?"

"Oh, you know, you looked thirsty," Oliver snorted rolling his eyes. "I came back because I forgot my keys and found you on the floor unconscious. What the hell's going on, Alex? And don't say nothing."

"I'm fine. I just didn't eat anything today," Alex said, brushing it off and swatting at Oliver to back up so he could stand.

"No, you don't eat anything for a day you get sluggish and cranky, this is hell of a lot worse," Oliver said, watching Alex closely as he struggled to get up. The younger man did it, but then his knees buckled. "Hey!" Luckily, Oliver caught him. "That's it, I'm taking you to the hospital."

"No! I'm not going! I'm fine!" Alex argued, trying to fight with Oliver.

"No you're not! Alex! You can't stand on your own let alone walk! Damn it, Alex," Oliver cursed as he took the struggling boy and put him in the office chair.

"Stop treating me like a child! I can take care of myself," Alex growled, that nanonap doing wonders for him.

"No you can't. You can take care of me, you can take care of the business, you can take care of Green Arrow, but you can't take care of yourself. Look at you, Alex! You're passing out, for Christ's sakes! You look like someone decked you in each eye! You're not okay and I want you to stop lying to me!" Oliver yelled, not realizing how upset he really was. Especially when Alex started to argue more.

"I'm not lying to you! I know I can handle this so just let me! I'm not some little girl that needs saving or an old man that's being mugged. I'm a grown adult and I want you to treat me like one!" Alex yelled back, forcing himself to stand on shaky legs. He held onto the desk for support, staring Oliver down.

"You are hurting yourself," the blond man said, speaking in a softer, but very stern tone and getting in Alex's face. "I am not going to stand by and watch one of my best friends do everything for everyone, but himself. I don't want to see you in the office for a week. Whatever work you're doing, it stops now. You're not taking care of yourself and if you don't start, you might not be around to finish anything. Now, I'm going to call Lois and tell her that I'm taking you to the hospital so they can help you. Then, we're going. Even if I have to throw you over my shoulder and carry you kicking and screaming. End of discussion."

Alex stood there, wanting to argue so much more, but couldn't. Oliver was right. If he kept this up he'd fail his mission and his family. "Fine," Alex said, standing as much as he could before sitting back down in the office chair, feeling like a scolded child. While Oliver dialed Lois, to tell her he would be late because of taking his friend to the hospital, Alex sat quietly. It was one thing to be in trouble with a friend, but it was another when that friend was also your boss and your best friend. Alex felt like crap, both emotionally and physically. This was supposed to be his day to wrap everything up and relax. Now he was on his way to the hospital with a pissed off boss.

"Come on," Oliver said, hanging up. "Do you think you can walk?" His tone was softer now, not as harsh as it had been.

"Yeah," Alex said as he forced himself to stand and try to walk, but since his little coma his body was trying to shut back down. Stumbling, Oliver quickly caught him.

"Looks like I will be carrying you," Oliver grunted as he easily picked up the smaller man and carried him to the elevator. Going as fast as he could, Oliver carried Alex to his car and set him inside before rushing around the hood and getting in on his side. "Just try and stay awake till we get there and they can help you." Easier said than done. The ride there was a quick one, but it also was hard for Alex to stay awake. Sitting still, his body took it as okay to hit the sleep button. "Alex? Alex!" Oliver cried, trying to keep his friend awake. The boy's head rested against the window, Alex was out like a light. "Damn it."

He sped to the hospital, nearly taking out a shrub or two to get up front in the ER. Going around, he pulled Alex from the passenger side and carried him in. "Hey! I need a doctor!" He yelled, trying to get some one's attention.

"What happened?" A nurse asked, coming over and guiding him to a gurney that was set aside.

"He passed out a little while again and came to, but went out again on the way here," Oliver explained as a doctor and another nurse came over, buzzing over Alex. Being forced to step aside, Oliver watched as they rushed his friend on to where they could take care of him. A buzzing sound of his phone caught his attention. Pulling it out of his pocket, he saw it was Lois and answered.

An hour or so later Alex was sitting up in a hospital bed, grumpy. The doctor hadn't come in yet and until he did, no one could see him. Which he took as blessing. Right then, he didn't feel like getting another tongue lashing from Oliver. Looking around he found himself hooked up to a heart monitor, a few saline bags, and nose tubes for oxygen. He felt like an experiment. Sighing, tried to get comfortable. Hopefully the doctor would be in before Oliver so he could get his papers straightened out. Alex's situation was. . . Delicate, at best. A few minutes after he'd woken up, a doctor did come in. "Ah, I see you're awake, Ms.-"

"It's Mr. Killian," Alex caught him before he could go further. "If the hospital had checked my paperwork that Mr. Queen had filled out then it should show on my charts." The doctor paused before looking through the young man's charts.

"Ah, I see now. My apologies, Mr. Killian." Letting out a sigh, he nodded. The biggest hurdle was still yet to come, but at least he got the second biggest out of the way. The doctor went over the symptoms and the fixes. Exhaustion, lack of nutrition, no sleep equaled bed rest for a few days, then taking it easy the rest of the week and working normal hours without over exerting himself. "You might not be so lucky next time," the doctor said before leaving the room. Now he was down from work for a week when there was that big meeting with shareholders and he had no way of making sure everything was double checked.

Alex knew he should have taken a night off, but he couldn't help it. He had to go patrol or work in the office or just. . . If he didn't do his job over the top, he could easily be replaced. That was his greatest fear and now he was bed ridden after being grounded from everything for a week.

"So you think you can handle taking a break from reality?" Oliver asked, walking in without knocking. Alex looked up as the older man came in and sat in the chair next to him. "I mean, you'll be waited on and given whatever you need or want."

"What if I want to use a laptop to work?" Alex asked, seeing where Oliver was going with this.

"Well, almost anything you want. How about a flat screen to watch endless movies to rot your mind with bad American humor?" Oliver countered.

"Single bullet and a revolver is more preferable."

"Alex. . . Until you can get a doctor's perfect bill of health, you're on leave. Which means you won't have access to any of your files through Queen Industries or the computer at the apartment. I've already restricted your password and username." Oliver's news hit Alex like a bucket of ice water.

"Wha-what?" He managed to choke out, wondering if he was hallucinating or not.

"I've set up a hotel room for you to stay in till you're feeling better," Oliver said. It was for the best. Alex needed a break or he'd put himself in an early grave.

"So, you're kicking me out?" Alex stared at him as he tried to decide whether he was angry or sad or maybe both.

"No. I'm just giving you space from everything so you can rest."

"I'm just tired, Oliver. I don't have polio. Making me go away isn't going to make me feel any better any faster. Locking me out of my job won't help either. I will rest, but can't force me to," Alex argued.

"If I don't you won't, though. I know you, Alex. If you don't want to do it you won't! Thant's why I've locked you out of everything."

"You don't understand!"

"Yes I do, Alex! You've worked yourself into the hospital! At this pace you'll be lucky if you survive next week!" Oliver was trying to do his best to keep calm, but if was getting hard when Alex was being stubborn as he always was.

"I have worked my fingers to the bone for you! I have worked too hard for so long to just be blocked now!" Alex was sure he'd be fine. Just a day or two of rest and he'd be back on his feet.

"You're killing yourself and you don't even see it!" Oliver cried out. "You are not just my personal assistant. If you were, I wouldn't be here. You wouldn't live with me or work on anything with me. You're the closest thing to a little brother as I'll ever get and even if you worked somewhere else, I would still treat you like family."

Alex was quiet for a moment, soaking everything that had been said in. He sighed, looking down at his lap for a moment. "I'd like my British television series on the flat screen, thank you."

"I think that can be arranged," Oliver said, a victorious smile spreading across his face. "I'll let you rest while I go home and get your bedroom ready for your imprisonment."

"No! Stay out of my room!" Alex cried, fearing what Oliver would find if he decided to pilfer.

"I won't go through any of your things! Just make your bed and stuff. I know you hate it when I go through your stuff," Oliver chuckled. He was still tempted though. Just to tease Alex and get him to make that shrill, annoyed noise that was hysterical.

"I will kill you with my bare hands if I have to," Alex grumbled, settling himself back against his bed. The exhaustion and possibly a sedative was kicking in, making it hard for him to stay up and keep arguing with Oliver.

"Get some rest. I'll check on you tomorrow," the older man said, getting up and giving Alex's hand a squeeze.

"Alright. Good night," Alex yawned. It was going to be a long week, he knew that much for sure.


End file.
